he ramped up a tax on mitt romney last night, saying romney's massachusetts health care law is barely distinguishable from the president's, and the hits just kept on coming. take a listen. >> governor romney's misguided health mandates slowed the income growth and cost massachusetts -- their job creation in that state was 47th in the nation. romney-care has driven private insurance costs up by $4.3 billion. it's cost taxpayers in iowa and across this country. if it cost massachusetts 18,000 jobs, think about what obamacare is going to do to this country. >> well, it's on. rick perry clearly, you could tell -- those were new talking points, new stump speech, new hits on romney. he talked about also why he believes it is better to have a clear contrast, saying that romney in particular, because of the health care mandate in massachusetts, will not offer the same contrast with president obama. bottom line, after being on defense, frankly, for the last two weeks, it's clear they're telegraphing they want to get more aggressive, go on more offense, and put romney on defense. >>> moving on.

it's perry and romney. the truth is there are a lot of doubts among conservatives about whether rick perry is ready and showing over and over again he might not be. there have been problems with mitt romney. he has problems with the donor class which doesn't think he can beat barack obama. that's why you see the donor class primaily rising up in unison trying to get chris christie in the race. >> it was as good a weekend in florida as president obama could ask for i think. you have herman cain giving new life. he's going to stay on the debate stage for the rest of time. he's not leaving until you get to the convention. he's one of the candidates who can sit there and take wicked shots at the front-runners, not worrying at all, as is michele bachmann and so those candidacies remain alive. and the republican party looks completely confused. they look directionless. it looks like they don't have a leader. if you have a romney surge and win and grabbing of the straw poll, that would be bad news for the presiden

romney versus obama. romney wins, 49% to obama's 47%. okay. now perry. perry versus obama, obama wins with 50%. perry, 45%. question, does this strike you as cheeky? for governor perry who late in live converted from democratic party to the republican party, to question romney's political conviction? i ask you, tim. >> i think that romney care is a huge difficulty for mitt romney, because the main thing the republicans can use against obama is obama care. so on that very relevant issue -- romney care in massachusetts they passed a law that included individual mandates as well as subsidies for people to get insurance, and other -- >> what's the problem? individual mandate? >> individual mandate. and today the fact that it was a prototype for obama's national bill. and i think romney says that state by state, and this happened -- customized for massachusetts. >> it's way too huge. but the problem is you had four years ago john mccain in the same position that romney walks with all these things on immigration, on taxes, campaign finance reform. no republica

there was something wrong with romney because of romney care. there was something wrong with each one of these candidates. finally here comes perry. he's perfect. that didn't last long. >> no, it didn't last long. and, you know, the old saying used to be, democrats fall in love with their candidates and republicans call in line. and that's kind of flipped now. and the republicans want to fall in love. they want the perfect candidate, and i was going to say the perfect guy. it's probably going to be a guy. and that person i think is not around. the republican party right now is a kind of a confusion -- it's a ball of confusion in some ways. you have the establishment, you have the tea party. bridging that divide wouldn't be easy for the most dexterous politician which rick perry i think is not. and so i don't know that chris christie, if he were to wade into the race would be able to bridge it either. >> well, that's the thing. all these guys look great until they step in. i think christie has been very convincing in his language about not going

romney has held steady. when republicans are asked who would they pick in a two-person race, perry leads that one. pretty narrow. 46% to 38%. importantly, though, for romney, his new hampshire firewall appears to be holding. in a suffolk university poll of likely republican voters, romney leads the field by nearly 30 points at 41%. look at this. jon huntsman is showing a pulse. he cracks double digits. 10% in this poll in a state he's thrown all of his eggs in. look at that. he's actually ahead of rick perry in a poll that matters in a state that matters. for huntsman who is moving his entire operation now to new hampshire, we're hearing stories of florida staffers being either let go or transferred to new new hampshire. tells you it's a one-state strategy for huntsman at this point. one other note on that quinnipiac poll. romney leads obama. obama leads perry. expect that to come up as well. finally, the president, he pitches his jobs bill today in ohio. his backdrop will be the brent spence bridge. today's

romney they're dealing with. is it is mitt romney against the second amendment before he was for the second amendment? was it before he was before the social programs from the standpoint of he was far standing out for roe vs. wade, before he was against roe vs. wade? he was for race to the top? he's for obamacare and now he's against it. >> there are a lot of reasons not to elect me or other people on this stage. but one reason to elect me is that i know what i stand for. >> just roll right into immigration. and then here is the immigration hit. >> i would build a fence on america's southern border on every mile, on every yard, on every foot, on every inch of the southern border. >> i want to reinforce what congresswoman bachmann said. i strongly favor 100% control of the border. >> we have to have a fence, we have to have enough border control agents to secure the fence. >> i think the fact he doesn't want to build a fence, he gave a speech in 2001 where he talked about buying national health insurance between m

that he is criticizing mitt romney for using in terms of romney care in massachusetts. that's one problem that he has. the other problem he has, he is blaming the feds. basically saying he wants the feds to do more to protect the border. regardless of what the texas rangers are doing. in another part of his answer, he blame lack of support for the federal government. then he is making an argument in terms of federal power and responsibility which also undercuts the main message of his campaign which is the states can do it alone. so he got caught in both directions on that answer. and i agree with sam on a lot of other answers he was back pedalling and back filling when he didn't really know the details. for example on, pakistan, you name it. >> chris hayes, a two-man debate. this whole things perry versus romney. was there a winner? >> well, i think it was romney. i think perry, the iconic moment was perry's inability to deliver what was written on his note cards, which was the litany of romney flip-flops which has been written out. he presumably has practiced, attempt

>> the first thing would be, it would be interesting if i was mitt romney's pollster, if i'm romney, i'm looking at the results among the non-tea party supporters, perry is beating me 29-27. if i can't win with tea party voters or non-tea party voters i'm not going to be the republican nominee. i don't think he should panic, having run before, having the experience, i think that will hold him. this is a marathon, not a sprint. >> he's got to start moving. >> exactly. >> you've been out on the campaign trail. you've seen mitt romney and rick perry. stylistically, they are so different, that's about as animated as mitt romney gets. rick perry, he's the cowboy, he's charismatic, he's shaking all hands. >> he connects. >> how do you close that gap if you're mitt romney? >> i think one of the -- >> the charisma gap. >> he's not even necessarily trying to be the charismatic, fire breathing kind of tea party guy. he was there on sunday in new hampshire in front of a tea party crowd. never even said the words tea party. >> in truth, regardless of what he says, we all three know this, mitt ro

mitt romney talks about fees. >> this is a live picture of romney romney arriving. you see he is here. and i think that's tim pawlenty. the former governor of minnesota who endorsed him. bobby jindal endorsed rick perry. a lot of endorsements. go ahead. you were making a point about mitt romney has a problem with the tea party. >> when he was governor, he increased spending. he increased taxes or fees. then the romney care. any business that had 11 or more employees, if they didn't go with the mandate. they had to pay a 300 or more fine. that's not good for business. so i don't know how he can reconcile his platform of geeg for business and then what did he in massachusetts. it just doesn't jive. i'm all for repentance. people realizing their errors. at the same time, he needs to do a better job of explaining that. that's why there is this disconnect. >> did you hear james carville earlier here in the situation room? he thinks sarah palin still might decide to run for the republican presidential nomination. you're plugged in. what do you think? >> anything is possib

and perry on romney. have a great weekend. welcome back dana. you are a blistering critic. >>> coming up, republican lawmakers are rewriting laws restricting access to voting. guess what, they are aimed at hurting obamas re-election. they are changing the rules, guess why? so no one will vote. you're watching "hardball." i want healthy skin for life. [ female announcer ] improve the health of your skin with aveeno daily moisturizing lotion. the natural oatmeal formula improves skin's health in one day, with significant improvement in 2 weeks. i found a moisturizer for life. [ female announcer ] only from aveeno. maybe not. v8 v-fusion juice gives them a full serving of vegetables plus a full serving of fruit. but it just tastes like fruit. [ male announcer ] get five dollars in money-saving coupons at v8juice.com. or will soon, you're starting a whole new journey. and, like many people, you're probably wondering, where do i go from here? consider an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan, insured by unit

romney and what she's doing to humanize mitt romney. but, you know, what i find interesting in all of this, and i raise this question, when was the last time that a candidate who was drafted into the race, not a candidate who actually wanted, like, said, i want to be president -- and i don't know the answer, but when was the last time one of those was successful in that raised the question about chris christie and rick perry. >> but the difference, beth, and i think that what christie's hesitancy is, he does have ambition to be president. it's just this wasn't his time line. >> right. and, you know, the case we're making for him, if not now, it's only to get more complicated in 2016 with people like jeb bush, marco rubio, who knows who else. >> clarence page, beth rhinehart, liz sodit, stick around. we'll talk about the president. what song does chris christie play to get psyched up for press conferences? "prove it all night" by bruce springsteen. he goes a little "b" side sometimes. the boss. [ male announcer ] tom's discovering that l

i am staggered by this mitt romney. i never knew this was there. he was far clumsier, far more obvious in his pandering, much more stilted. he is kicking you know what in this campaign i think. >> you think 17 years learning how to debate is finally working. he's been debating for ted kennedy. >> the goal he used to have. >> i don't think that mitt romney was there. i think this is what happens when you have run once before and when the people around you are very inexperienced at this -- at this level and his best line was, every time perry tried to swat him he would look at him and say nice try. chris: there you go again. >> right. chris: let me ask you about earlier in the week, a couple of things, not just debate but earlier in the week we saw him danny dan with the very far right likud guys playing what looked like pretty cheap politics in the streets of new york. >> the republican politics have really -- for years going after the jewish vote. they have not managed to dent democratic hole in it. they do not think they would have a chance and a

rick perry, mitt romney. mitt romney's been a guy that's been described as somebody that you're not sure if he's comfortable in his own skin. rick perry seems like, hey, i am who i am. >> one thing about mitt romney, i think mitt romney in private settings, sort of interesting, charming, engaging, in public not so much. i think perry feels like more comfortable in his skin. i think these guys spend too much time. i blame the candidates, because ultimately it's about the candidates, they spend too much time thinking about how they're coming in cost. and it's partly our fault. if he had said that thing, i wouldn't even see it. >> exactly. >> makes me blush. >> but can you imagine what they would have done -- >> but very quickly, it's a point that we all say we want authenticity and the minute a candidate is authentic, we all kill him. >> i know a little bit about that. >> oh, no. >> that's part of it. >> so washington folks can't handle these guys who really aren't comfortable with themselves like a rick perry

romney care did not. it was overlooked in this debate and perry allowed romney to turn this into a pile on him. he's going to get better at being defensive and giving good answers. >>> paul begala. >> we saw that the tea party may be as george w. bush might say, a double edged six shooter. lots of energy, excitement and enthusiasm. kind of extreme positions that could hurt them with mainstream voters. >> roland martin? >> it's amazing what you heard governor rick perry's answer when it came to illegal i am granlts. it was the right answer it was the correct answer and i'm surprised all those tea party people forgot that ronald reagan signed a deal allowing 3 million illegal immigrants in terms of amnesty. they tend to forget conservative history. smart move to attract latino voters in important states in 2012. >>> wolf blitzer, i was impressed that governor perry didn't back off even from the not popular. like the immigration issue allowing children of illegal immigrants in the united states to get the in

, can this fellow simply watch mitt romney, mitt romney stand and watch rick perry stand pass him. if he is whistling pas past the graveyard, can he do the silent treatment. >> no. that's what i've been trying to do. get a sense of romney camp of what their strategy is. they want somebody to slow rick perry down. they don't want to yet to be mitt romney. >> do they look good, chuck todd suggested to me, that if michele bachmann, if she goes after him, does that make romney look all the weaker that he didn't do it? >> i don't know, not necessarily. they want -- they believe that rick perry is thin skinned. they believe that if he is asked enough tough questions by whom ever, whether the questioners here at the debate or other members of the panel or the other candidates, that he will not do what mark halprin says and what we think he needs to do, which is to be calm and in control. that will allow romney to not be the guy who created him. >> so not the perfect "hardball" guest. the one i wait months for. the one that loses it all right on television. >> if they could all pay to have

mitt romney is desperately, desperately trying to take perry down on social security because romney doesn't stand a chance with southern conservative christian base. perry is dead wrong on social security, medicare and medicaid, and almost every other issue. so is the republican party. president obama for the record has done nothing to put social security in jeopardy. nor has he given any hint that social security would be insolvent in the short term, for years to come. this is strictly, as i see it, a straw man argument by the conservatives. if you want to break down the debate tonight, i mean, perry is a basic guy. he kind of reminds me of jesse ventura. has a hell of a headline but doesn't have much story. for the tea partyers and republican base, you don't have to give detail. all you have to is talk about cutting taxes, talking regulations. tonight they threw in t.o.r.t. reform. what struck me about tonight's entire debate, very little focus on jobs. we have an unemployment rate that is nailing our country yet they could not focus their ideas on exactly what we're going to do to get th

. >> perry versus romney, g.o.p. debate. >> how hot does it get between rick perry and mitt romney. >> eight people on the stage we're really only paying attention tonight to two. >> jon: thank you. i knew i could ignore those other people. by the way, i know it was a preview. what did happen? >> mitt romney and rick perry kicking it up a notch. >> mitt romney and rick perry went at it. >> mitt romney and rick perry go face to face. >> it was nothing but fire. >> it was exactly the thing you thought it would be. [ laughter ] there's only two explanations how that could have happened. one four months before any vote is cast. you decide the nomination is down to romney and perry. frame the debate by pitting the two against each other or your precogs. i'll let the audience at home decide. [ laughter ] >> governor romney, your private sector experience as governor perry's strategist recently put it consisted of being quote a buy out specialist. your response to that? >> governor perry you clearly don't like the massachus

mitt romney said he was for, against obama-care, but what about -- mitt romney? >> jennifer, there's two conversations i've had about where this goes from here. on one hand, perry's -- this could lead to the beginning of the end, could be like fred thompson and wesley clark. on the other hand, is mitt romney in the role of hillary clinton here where he has to continue be perfect at a debate until he's not? >> i don't think so. that's what you're doing really is comparing rick perry to barack obama. >> no -- >> i'm saying rick perry is no barack obama. the thing that's hard for republican candidates, it seems like in the end, they pick the person who probably has the best shot at winning, i think mccain probably had the best shot at winning hand i think mitt romney has the best shot at winning and probably end up with him. he has the baggage of having moved to the right considerably and i think romney will be the nominee but i think he will be hurt because he had to move to the right too much. >> it's clear that has the romney strategy. at the end of the day, you

>> romney is good. romney, david said five years. i'd say eight years he's been running, and he never stopped run, and his book, in contrast to perry's book-- this is what i believe, i hate washington, is perry's book. romney's is tested. it's focus group tested, so he can quote lines. it was intended as a campaign document and it is a campaign document. i would agree with david that romney's had three good debates. i remember in 2008 the buzislamic word was authenticity. people were looking for authenticity. and i think both mccain and obama in separate ways represented what voters were looking for in authenticity in 2008. i think that could be a problem with romney. there's a lack of spontaneity. it is very well rehearsed. it's very well polished. the other thing that was missing in this that struck me, jim, is that this is a different republican party. from george bush's. george bub ran for president as the governor of texas, trumpeting the fact he had gotten 50% of the latino vote when he ran for reelection in 1998 and calling fo

what does mitt romney do? mitt romney will be standing right flex to him. he has been the i'm the nice guy. >> i like this. arms out like this. here is the question. >> he's standing right next to him. >> chuck todd, i was talking to him and he is always wore bitd this. what happens if romney is sitting there watching it like the referee and michele bachmann who's got a lot of spunk starts throwing the darts at rick perry and he looks like a wuss because he is pawlenty all of a sudden, he becomes pawlenty the guy who didn't throw the punch. what happens? >> well look. one of the questions tonight is will mitt romney be a little rattled by the presence of the big guy immediately to his left? romney has been the big guy standing on the line in these debate podium things. >> you're right. >> he's been big, tall guy and everybody else seems quarrelous and yappy and maybe pugulistic and he would stand and look and smile in this detached way. can't do that today. he is with another big guy who may take a few pokes at him. >> like "toy story" where the cowboy sees

perry, romney and huntsman. with respect to the straw ballot, romney was the only one that committed to play. his wife is from orlando. they invested resources. he may overperform. not only did perry create an opening for romney, but may have for huntsman as well. >> who wins the straw vote tomorrow? romney or somebody else? >> i don't know if romney could win it, but he'll finish stronger. he has the strongest relationship with the delegates. he campaigned here actively in 2008. >>> speaking at the c pack conference perry tried damage control. listen. >> as conservatives, we know values and vision matter. it's not who is the slickest candidate or the smoothest debater that we need to elect. we need to elect the candidate with the best record and the best vision for this country. >> well there he is reading his notes, of course. that points so with anybody. can you lose a debate badly and say it didn't matter? >> no. sally is right. a lot of people won't pay attention. >> he's 0 for 3. >> he hasn't been impressi

romney. romney is putting up this e-mail. they're out there, aren't they? >> oh, yeah this is the beginning of the opposition wars. >> mitt romney's campaign is putting out e-mails like this one. they were quick to circulate the jobs numbers in his e-mail blast this afternoon. so the fight is on. to get romney trashing mr. job creation for losing jobs. let me go to this last night. here's perry last night in his fight, it's an interesting fight that everybody's watching between perry right now and romney. let's take a look. here's perry last night in jefferson, iowa. he has taken off the gloves. he is singling out mitt romney. going after the governor of massachusetts. the ex-one by name, or not by name, but by position. let's listen. >>> one of my opponents in the republican primary, while he was the governor of massachusetts, their job creation in that state was 47th in the nation. government mandate d, government-run health care is what of what he put in place as the governor of massachusetts. it is time, and i think it's very important that we put someo

and the head which is mitt romney. the head thinking steady, electability, can beat obama on his issues. so i honestly don't know the answer, but i do think you're seeing that basic dynamic play out in a we that's not dissimilar, i'd say, chris, to '04. remember howard dean as heart. john kerry as head. it's not that different. one is the candidate they love. the other candidate is the one they like, but think other people can like him, too. >> i agree with you. i still think they're looking for more heart and like to have somebody better and smarter than perry. here's frank rich writing in "new york" magazine, "whether perry snares big prize or not he could prove a shock to the system taint mount to barry goldwater in 1964, and just as misestimated now as goeldwater was then." he's arguing if perry loses the nomination or election he moves the party further to the right. my belief is they're looking for somebody like perry, who's accomplished in debating, for example. >> the partisans on both sides want to punch each

i'm talking about romney. sell outline his economic plan tomorrow in an essay that will appear in "usa today" tomorrow, he says this, seeking to pay back political favors, president obama has catered to the institutional interests of union bosses at the expense of workers and businesses. i will fight against measures that deprive workers of basic rights such as the secret ballot. do you view that, labor right there front and center in the romney economic plan? >> i think he's making a big mistake. his father was george romney. you know, it's hard to imagine in coming from detroit where we had the successful loans to both chrysler and general motors that both companies have come back. they're paying the loans off. it's a success story. it's a success story here in michigan. we have hiring going on. we have new industries going on. i can't believe that he's talking this way and i don't know who he's addressing but it's not going to work in michigan. >> james hoffa is the president of the teamsters union. thank y

romney may start to press this. when i talk to people in texas, they think his achilles heel is cronyism and pay to play. >> ari fleischer your comments? >> well, anderson, i think that republicans have to be careful here that social security does not become the defining issue that divides them in this primary. they have to remember these debates to bring it back to barack obama, jobs, debt and deficits. this is the core strength that have made republicans so strong in this cycle. and it will come back to the social security doe bait. the romney people love it. it's a given. the bigger perspective cannot be lost as these debates continue. >>> let me know what you think, follow me on twitter @andersoncooper. rick perry said president obama's $800 billion stimulus package created zero jobs. next, we're checking the facts on that, keeping them honest. ari was saying, the focus should have been more on obama. we're going to take a look at how the presidential hopefuls blasted the president tonight over his health care p

i mean, we will wait until tomorrow andsy which mitt romney we're talking to tonight. >> governor romney. >> i'll use the same term again, nice try, governor. i wrote a book two years ago and i laid out in that book with my views are, on a wide range of issues. i'm a conservative businessman, and spent my life in politics, i spent my life in business, i know how jobs come, how jobs go. my positions are laid out in that book, i stand by them. >> paul: we're back with dan henninger and jason riley editorial board, dorothy rabinowicz joins the panel. >> i don't think he's given a debate performance that justifies his front runner status in the race. that's for sure. he can't seem to land a valid punch on romney. i think that romney has become a better debater than four years ago, it's not entirely rick perry's fault. as we saw, he's struggling with the attack lines, not exactly rolling off the tongue there. it's frustrating because romney is vulnerable on some very serious issues and his defense of social security, i think, is subject to, could be subject to attack by perry, if perry could

. >>> also, weathered mitt romney. he's just like you if you eat fast food and live in a mcmansion. >> the great middle class, the 80 to 90% of us in this country. >>> and i am innocent. troy davis's final words, his death reviving the debate over an unjust system of justice. tonight i'll talk with barley sheck of the innocence project. >> just so much doubt. if never occurred me to me that the government would go ahead and murder this man. >> welcome to "politics nation." tonight's lead, republicans get ready, because the president is just getting warmed up. today president obama took his jobs satisfying to the home turf of two top republicans in congress, and he challenged speaker boehner and senator mitch mcconnell to stand in the way of progress. he challenged them. stand in the way of job growth, and he challenged them to pass his jobs bill so the country can fix the crumbling infrastructure in their own backyards. >> it's in such poor condition it's been labeled functionally obsolete. think about that. functional

and the head, which is mitt romney p. the head, thinking, steady, electability, can beat obama on his issues. so i honestly don't know the answer, but do i think you're seeing that basic die nam he can in a way that he's not dissimilar to '04. remember howard dean as heart, john kerry as head. it's not that different. one is the candidate they love, the other candidate is the one they like but think other people can like him, too. >> i think they're still looking for more heart and like to have somebody better and smarter than perry maybe. frank rich writes whether perry snares the big prize or not, key prove a shock to the system tantamount to barry gold water in '64 and just as underestimated as gold water was. a little strange writer there.' as gold water was. a little strange writer there. i think he's arguing even if perry loses the election, he sill mov still moves the party ahead. >> i think people on both sides, the partisans on both sides want to punch each other in the face. they get a lot of satisfaction from t

romney trying to do this. bachman trying to do that. perry trying to diminish romney. santorum trying to go into the immigration realm to get perry. so i don't know if we're going to get those things that you want and also i don't know if the candidates would have time. >> well, i think at this point, when you're running for president and they all deserve respect for actually putting their necks out and running, but i think at this point with how far we've fallen over the last several years, we have fallen into a disturbing descent that we have to have serious swers, enough of the bumper sticker stuff. enough of the cute little asides. we need serious answers to these and i hope china is brought up. >> bill: the republican challenger next year is, look, we got to restore america's greatness 'cause we're -- >> america, again. bill, america, again. anyone can take it. it's theirs if they want to take it. >> bill: thanks very much. two liberals will tell us what they would like to see tonight. and then jon stewart takes me to task over taxing the wealthy. can't wait. righ

>> certainly on romney care, and you got to know that the first debate between mitt romney, should he get the nomination and president obama, president obama will preemptively thank him for the idea of the individual mandate. and that undermines republicans one of the most potent arguments against the president. >> you mean, if it's romney versus obama, obama will just kiss him on the cheek during the first debate for giving him the idea, and that will undermine his whole challenge? >> absolutely. and that's why i think a lot of republican voters, a lot of tea partiers, a lot of independents, are looking for someone to fill that vacuum that mitt romney has created by essentially being the establishment's front-runner. and maybe that's rick perry. maybe it's somebody else. i think the whole process is more decentralized, so maybe we don't know who it is yet. >> yeah, that's very cute and teasing, matt, but here we are, september, the iowa caucuses are coming -- you're smiling, you've got about three months. for somebody to come in now, tell me how anybody could come in. just give me a

people all along going mitt romney, mitt romney -- competency. and it's not a sexy word, but very appealing word. and i think that's what's coming across for him. and the second thing -- >> whether it's ad campaigns or presidential races, contrast is what matters the most. especially if you're taking on the incompetent. and you match the competency against what a lot of business people, a lot of former obama supporters are saying about this president. that's an even stronger -- okay. you know what? he's not sexy. i'm never going to scream for this guy -- i'm not going to shout. we tried that in 2008. >> the other thing interesting, even the issue that everybody thought he was going to get caught up on, the romney care, 33% of the voters say, i don't care, they're voting for the guys. speaking of guy, you look at sarah palin's camp, herb cain, she calls him, i love that. 17%, that bodes well for chris christie. what people like about him, he's not, he's outside, he's different. that's the vote for i don't want one of these guys, which if i'm chris

expect from the romney camp? we're going to be talking to vin we shall an economic advisor to mitt romney. he lost his front runner status. they can't be happy about that. maybe it takes a little bit of pressure off of him in some ways. he really has to show that he can go the distance. >> look, i don't know. i noticed his strong tranquillity in the last couple of days in the performances specially yesterday. i think he's counting on something going wrong now with rick perry. something that doesn't fill out about him as he becomes a person to us not just a profile. and he's hoping he'll stumble or do something wrong or something won't come through that he needs to do to be the republican nominee. i don't think romney can win this anymore. i think he has to hope for perry to come apart somehow. he seems to be confident will happen. if i were him i'd have the willies right now about the growing prominence growing inevitability at this point of rick perry. >> i know i was listening to you on "hardball" last nigh you

with romney. he's so proud of that meeting, but he doesn't want anybody to see it. it's a classic case of romney wanting to have it both ways, we think. no wonder republicans are looking for someone else. he wants them to stand up and be seen with the earn person he's been with. is that too much? this is "hardball" on msnbc. diabetes testing? it's all the same. nothing changes. then try this. freestyle lite® blood glucose test strip. sure, but it's not gonna-- [beep] wow. yep, that's the patented freestyle zipwik™ design. did it just-- [both] target the blood? yeah, drew it right in. the test starts fast. you need just a third the blood of one touch.® that is different. so freestyle lite test strips make testing... easy? easy. great. call or click-- we'll send you strips and a meter, free. free is good. freestyle lite test strips. call or click today. >>> well, as bad as things look for president obama, "the wall street journal" points out that he can console himself with the electoral math fo

mitt romney vetoed that bill. the reason he vetoed that bill is not because he's against immigration. we to this country but he feels it's important to observe the rule ofÑl and rick perry took a different path. he was sent that same bill he signed it into law. this is one of those magnets that mitt romney talks about that we need to shut off if we're going to get sewers get serious with that. >> texas has been on the ontlines of the failure of the federal government to secure our borders. >> sean: i agree aboutmk)qr(uéÑjz#c4d[qg!b85k$ryi/#a 6 z though. i guess there are two issues here. one is, if someone is in the country illegally should they have access to the school system but are we rewarding illegal behavior when you get an in-state tuition break versus say, somebody that lives in pennsylvania that wants the university of texas they don't get the same advantage. can you understahat? >> yes, but 175ñ' 3dúf(y,9@ ñ0 ipl j4l 9kt>n3 texas legislators 10 years ago decided that if a child -- we're talking ab

romney's going to take a lot of hits. >> karen? >> i think it's actually romney. i think he's going to have to engage in a way that we haven't seen. i think expectations are so low for perry. what j.p. said i think is exactly what we'll see, but i think that's what we expect to see. >> thank you so much. we'll talk to you soon here. of course, you can catch the republican debate right here only on msnbc. brian williams and politico's john harris will moderate it. it will start at 8:00 eastern time. >>> right now the sheriff of carson city, nevada, is giving an update on tuesday's deadly shooting. investigators are still trying to figure out precisely why a man armed with an ak-47 opened fire at an ihop killing four people, wounding eight before turning the gun on himself. the sheriff said this is an isolated incident. again, a news conference going on right now. let's listen in. >> a student of military history and was known for his dry sense of humor. he lived in row know. sergeant first class miranda mcillny was a fast riser in our listed corp. military occupati